


What is Love?

by Deviant_Donghun



Series: Sanders Sides One Shots [41]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Light Angst, M/M, Unrequited Crush, one sided prinxiety - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2020-10-14
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:27:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27001966
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Deviant_Donghun/pseuds/Deviant_Donghun
Summary: It was no secret that Roman was infatuated with Virgil. However, when he was asked what he liked about him, he couldn't come up with a single thing. Virgil turned him down when he asked him out, so Roman took some  time to figure himself out. In doing so, he met someone who showed him what love truly is.
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Logic | Logan Sanders, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders/Morality | Patton Sanders
Series: Sanders Sides One Shots [41]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1962379
Comments: 2
Kudos: 25





	What is Love?

It was no secret that Roman was infatuated with Virgil. He doted on him at every opportunity, stared at him across the classroom, even offered to partner with him in the lab. When asked what he liked about him, he would say such things as his laugh, the look on his face when he was deep in thought or reading a good book, the air of mystery that hung around him like a cloak.

The only problem was that Virgil never saw him that way. Virgil only ever saw him a friend, a good friend, but a friend nonetheless. Roman once asked Virgil out but Virgil turned him down cold. When asked why, his response was as blunt as needed. He wasn’t trying to hurt Roman, but it sure did come out that way. 

“Roman, I’ve told you this before but I don’t see you that way. In fact, I just accepted a date from Logan the other day.”

Roman’s face fell. “What?”

Virgil sighed, laying a gentle hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry. I told you this before, but I only see you as a friend.”

Roman nodded, crestfallen. His pride was wounded and he couldn’t help but feel that Virgil had betrayed him in some way. Virgil squeezed his shoulder, causing him to look up at the slightly older boy. “Roman, have you thought about what I said the last time you told me you like me?”

Roman knew what instance he was talking about. He’d confessed during a study session and Virgil had said that Roman didn’t love him, he loved the idea of him, the construct in Roman’s mind that looked like him. Virgil had said he hadn’t truly taken the time to know him so couldn't love him properly. Roman had thought that was an unfair thing to say but still did his best to get to know Virgil more. He’d asked him questions about his favorite things, tried to learn his opinion on topics Roman cared about. 

He nodded. “I did think about it! I’ve tried to know you more, I’ve tried to figure you out!” He knew he sounded desperate but he might as well have been.

Virgil just sighed. “Roman, what have you learned about me? Have you learned any of my interests, have you learned anything of my personality when it comes to things like personal space or quiet time? Or have you only ever asked about what you thought was important, wanting to know what I thought of your hobbies and interests?”

Roman opened his mouth to respond that he’d asked about Virgil’s interests too, that he’d tried to respect quiet time boundaries, but he couldn’t because he hadn’t. He hadn’t asked about Virgil’s hobbies, only what he thought of Roman’s. So, Roman just hung his head and walked away from the older boy.

A few weeks went by before Roman even talked to Virgil again. He didn’t mean to avoid him, he just knew he had a few things to work out. Time passed quickly in college, the only marking of it being deadlines and class times. 

During those few weeks, Roman went out of his way to avoid Virgil. He would sit at the complete opposite end of the cafeteria, he’d moved farther forward in their shared classes to not sit right next to Virgil in the back. Looking back on it, he was grateful for that change as it got him into new environments, different parts of the school he’d never explored otherwise. In those spaces, in those weeks, he’d met Patton.

Patton was the kindest person he’d ever met. Learning from his mistakes with Virgil, he asked Patton all sorts of questions about his hobbies and interests, getting the botany major to talk for hours about his favorite flowers. It turned out that asking the right question would cause him to go into hour long talks of things.

Patton also asked about his major and his interests, letting him gush about theater to his heart's content. He found that he loved the way Patton’s eyes followed his every movement when he wildly gestured, the way he’d make sure Roman had eaten that day, how he cared for Roman.

Finally, after almost a month of hanging out with Patton and learning everything there was to know about him, he realized what Virgil had been trying to tell him. So, after class, he stopped him in the hallway. To his credit, Virgil didn’t sigh in annoyance or try to brush past him. Instead, he stood there patiently and waited for Roman to speak. 

Roman rubbed the back of his neck, suddenly shy. “I think I get it now.” He said at last. 

Virgil just nodded. “And what did you get, young padawan?”

“I understand what you were talking about when you said I was in love with the idea of you rather than you yourself.” 

Virgil’s smile was soft. “How did you figure that out?”

“You not loving me back was the best thing that ever happened to me. It caused me to reevaluate what I thought love was and figure out what it actually is.”

“And what is it?” His phone buzzed but he only briefly glanced at the screen before looking back at Roman, expecting an answer.

“Love isn’t an infatuation. It’s the feeling of wanting the other person’s happiness, even at the cost of your own. It’s wanting what’s best for them, even if it means leaving them. It’s knowing you would die for them in a heartbeat. It’s the feeling of fitting together like puzzle pieces, complimenting and creating a larger picture that is no less beautiful than the individual pieces are.”

Virgil’s smile grew as he spoke. “I hope you can see now the difference between the way you felt for me and the way you feel for the person you’ve obviously fallen head over heels for.”

Roman nodded, watching him check his phone again. “I do! I see now that you were a simple infatuation and it went no deeper than what a celebrity crush could get. I hope we can still be friends, though?”

Virgil nodded, reaching out to squeeze his shoulder. “Of course we can still be friends. Now, if you don’t hurry, you’re gonna be late for your next class.” Judging by the texts he’d received, Roman correctly assumed Virgil had a date with Logan planned.

Roman hurried off to his next class, practically careening down the corridors. He thought about his date with Patton that was set up for that night as he slid into his seat, his mind completely wrapped in fantasy by the time the class started.


End file.
